


Romeo and Juliette

by Haruka_1224



Category: BanG Dream! Girl's Band Party! (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, Takarazuka AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-18
Updated: 2018-04-18
Packaged: 2019-04-24 13:34:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14356545
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Haruka_1224/pseuds/Haruka_1224
Summary: An AU where the girls are part of the all-girls theater troupe, the Takarazuka Revue.In their underclassman years, Kaoru and Chisato receive the lead roles in the musical "Romeo and Juliette." However, issues from their past has made things tense and awkward between them. In order for the show to be a success, they are going to have to talk things through.“I… I’m such an idiot…” Kaoru whispered, burying her face in her hands. How could she make such a stupid misunderstanding when she claimed to be the one who knew Chisato the best, who understood her the most?“You are,” Chisato said softly, but the usual bite to her words was missing. “You are, but so am I. I’m so sorry, Kao-chan…”“Chi-chan…”





	Romeo and Juliette

**Author's Note:**

> Am I combining my two obsessions just because I can? Yes, yes I am.  
> Romeo and Juliette was first adapted from the French musical of the same name by the Takarazuka Revue in 2010, performed by Hoshigumi (Star Troupe). It was such a hit that it was put on again in 2011 (Snow), 2012 (Moon) and 2013 (Star).  
> In Takarazuka, otokoyaku are women who perform and present as men, while musumeyaku perform and present as their own gender. The Top Star is the lead otokoyaku of the troupe, and receives all lead roles until they graduate, alongside their top musumeyaku partner. They all go by stage names, and I spent hours specially creating stage names for the Bandori girls that referenced either their seiyuu, their personality, their own name or a mix of the three.

**_Romeo and Juliette, Hoshigumi  
Shinjin Kouen Cast List_ **

_Romeo - Tadokoro Haruki_  
_Juliette - Asato Sumire_  
_Tybalt - Hikasa Hayato_  
_Mercutio - Suzumi Azusa_  
_Benvolio - Kurosawa Tomoki_  
_Death - Kizuki Rei ..._

Kaoru rubbed at her eyes as she took yet another look at the cast list, trying to calm her racing heart.

When she was a little girl, she had fallen in love with the Takarazuka Revue, with the mystical world where dreams came true and women could be handsome princes just as much as they could be beautiful princesses. She knew, from the moment she watched _Romeo and Juliette,_ that someday she would be on that stage as an _otokoyaku,_ playing a handsome, tragic Romeo that would touch the hearts of girls the way Yuzuki Reon’s Romeo had touched hers.

For years, she worked toward her goal with a burning, single-minded focus. Even if she had to lose herself, to lose her friends and the supposed fun of childhood, she was going to become a Takarazuka _otokoyaku._ Nothing would ever change her mind.

Six years ago, she had passed the audition for the Takarazuka Music School, taking the very first step into her dream world. Two years after that, she passed her exams, chose her stage name - _Tadokoro Haruki -_ and received her troupe assignment - _Hoshigumi._ It was exactly what she longed for: not only was _Hoshi_ known for their mesmerizing and attractive _otokoyaku_ , it was the very troupe that first performed _Romeo and Juliette_ , led by her favorite Top Star, Yuzuki Reon.

For the last four years, she had worked her way through the ranks in _Hoshigumi_ , determined to make her mark and set herself on the star track that would lead her to the top of the Grand Stairs, basking in the spotlight as the troupe’s Top Star. She crushed her loneliness underfoot and poured herself into her work, ignoring the fact that her troupe and classmates barely knew her and that her best friend had drifted so far away, they could no longer be called friends.

Stoically, she bore the loneliness of leaving her hometown, of being separated from her family and having no one close to talk to. She worked and worked, aware that her pain was fleeting and one day, when she stood at the top with everything she had ever dreamed of in her hands, it would seem like nothing at all.

Seven years, she would be an underclassman for seven years. During that time, she was determined to impress her seniors, the customers and the company, to show them she deserved the honor of being called a true Takarazuka _otokoyaku_. She would entertain no other outcome.

Now, finally, the first of her rewards had come knocking.

Kaoru had received the best role an underclassman could hope for: the lead role in the _shinjin kouen_ , literally “new people’s performance”. It was a special show where underclassmen were given the opportunity to gain center stage experience, taking over the main roles from their seniors, and a chance to put their names out there by impressing the customers. It was her shot at proving to the world that she deserved to stand on this stage, to sing and to dance and to act with the best of the best.

“Well done, Haruki-kun!” Kaoru nearly jumped out of her skin when one of her seniors came over for a high-five, “This was the role you always wanted, yeah?”

Kaoru nodded, resisting the urge to squeal like an excited schoolgirl, “It must have surely been Fate, granting me this chance to live as Romeo for a single, fleeting moment!”

“Dramatic as always, huh?” The senior chuckled fondly, “With that spirit, you’ll surely perform spectacularly.”

“I certainly hope you will.”

A sweet yet ice-cold voice chimed up behind her, and Kaoru turned to see the wonderful young _musumeyaku_ who would be her Juliette: Shirasagi Chisato, stage name Asato Sumire. She was one of the most talented and distant _musumeyaku_ in _Hoshigumi_ , a girl who had danced with the stars for so long, she could no longer reach the earth.

“ _Ara,_ Sumire-chan, have some faith,” the senior said with a laugh, “We all know how skilled Haruki-kun is.”

Chisato merely gave a bright, plastic smile in response, one that did not reach her eyes. Even in her own class, the amount of people who dared to call her by her given name was painfully small, a testament to how high the walls around her heart were.

Before Kaoru could say a word, a muffled cry of surprise echoed behind her, and she turned to see one of her favorite juniors with her hands clasped over her mouth.

Stage name Hikasa Hayato, real name Udagawa Tomoe, the redhead had graduated at the top of her class with almost startling ease. Steadfast and dependable, she had established herself as the person to go to for anyone with troubles, and her friendly, easygoing nature meant that she had no enemies. Despite her obvious talents, she was a modest girl who could barely understand her own attractiveness, making her one of the most likable underclassmen in the troupe - maybe even the entire Revue.

“I look forward to working with you, Tomoe,” Kaoru smiled reassuringly, “I know that you will be the most brilliant Tybalt.”

Tomoe responded with a deep bow, her nervousness plain on her face, “Please take care of me, Kaoru-senpai.”

As the girls who were cast in main roles began to gather around her, Kaoru found a great hope filling her chest. They were all great actresses, determined and hardworking people, and they would surely make the audience truly realize the weight of the word “ephemeral”, of how truly fleeting the _shinjin kouen_ performances are; they take place only twice in the show’s entire run, once in Takarazuka itself and once in Tokyo.

The actress for Mercutio, Suzumi Azusa, real name Kaneyama Aiko, was the most senior ranked of them at her sixth year. She was a friendly and playful sort of person that anyone could get along with, and one of the best dancers in her class. With her energy, she would surely bring life to an authentic, boyish Mercutio, Kaoru thought.

The actress for Benvolio, Kurosawa Tomoki, real name Okusawa Misaki, was a third year, quiet, hardworking and straight-talking even to her seniors. She was the type to remain fixed to their goal and get everyone back on track if they strayed, Kaoru thought, a very important person that every troupe needed at least one of.

Together with Tomoe and Chisato, they were a solid core five. Separately, their talents were definitely enough to put on a good show, but would they be able to, in this fleeting moment of their rapidly fading youth, work together and create the powerful chemistry required for a truly _phenomenal_ show?

Chisato was notorious for being difficult to create bonds with. There were even whispers that, if Chisato had been more approachable, they would have considered her for Top _Musumeyaku_ when their previous one graduated last year, despite only having been a third year at the time. She was talented enough, beautiful and hardworking and absolutely breathtaking on stage, but she just could not form that wild spark with her partner that set the best Top Combinations aside from the rest.

She was always alone, Kaoru had noticed, even when she wasn’t. She could be laughing alongside her friends, alongside their ex-classmates like Kanon and Maya or even Hina and Aya, but she would still look as if she were all by herself in a wide, lonely world.

Chisato had always been a withdrawn person, ever since they were children, but the walls around her heart had not been that high when Kaoru knew her. Then fame hit, and everything changed - the young Chisato found herself subject to the cruel words of the media, of people who forgot that she was a human being, a _child_ , and tore into her with bloodthirsty fervor.

Kaoru had hoped to be her prince on a white horse, her knight in shining armor, but it had not worked out. Her friend had only grown colder and more withdrawn until, without much warning, Chisato moved to Tokyo for the sake of her career, leaving their friendship shattered in the dust.

Now, there was nothing but the ghost of a past between them, the shadow of two clumsy children that probably no longer existed. Time had passed, they had grown and changed, and Chisato looked more miserable than ever.

Taking a deep breath, Kaoru readied herself - she was definitely going to get it right this time. Fate had not merely guided her to Romeo, it had guided Chisato to Juliette as well. This was her chance, the world was telling her, to regain a part of the childhood she had lost and put warmth back into both of their lives…

“Has everyone taken note of their roles?” The director’s voice pulled Kaoru from her thoughts, and she quickly joined the chorus of loud _yes, sir_ s that rang through the room. “We’ll be doing a table-read at 1pm in the second rehearsal room. Am I understood?”

“Yes sir!”

This was it, this was her shot at getting everything she wanted in one fell swoop. There was no way she would allow herself to fail.

Picking up her script, Kaoru could hardly contain her excitement. She was actually going to be Romeo, she was actually going to have a lead role, even if it was only a _shinko_ …

This was not something she could afford to mess up.

 

~

 

Chisato sighed deeply as she returned to her apartment, trying not to let the director’s words cut too deeply into her.

The table-read had gone quite as expected; there was not a single person there who had not seen the show at least once, after all. Everyone had an idea of what their character should be, and the important part now was further establishing that, maybe adding their own personal twist to the role, and building the invaluable chemistry that would make the show a true success.

Chisato would have to spend some time with Tomoe, since she would be her precious cousin, even if they barely interacted during the play. The Montague boys would also have to spend more time as a group, a fact that made Chisato rather sorry for the poor junior in the mix. Aiko and Kaoru were both rather… eccentric, to say the least; Aiko had been described by her classmates as “the ideal companion to think about useless things”, and Kaoru was just... Kaoru. If the three of them made it through without anyone being strangled, Misaki would deserve an award for self-control.

However, the worst had yet to come - Chisato would also have to spend time with Kaoru. _Alone_ time, the director had specified; they should go on dates and flirt and build up that romantic chemistry that would serve as the backbone of the entire performance.

The director had emphasized that multiple times, warning Chisato that her stubborn, cold behavior would not go down well with him.

“I am not sure if it is an attitude problem,” he had said, “Nor do I care. Asato, you will either create good chemistry with your co-stars, or cause this entire production to fail because of your pride. It is all up to you.”

She sighed again. Chemistry with Tomoe was not something she needed to worry too much about, since it was Tybalt that was helplessly in love with Juliette and that they barely said two words to each other onstage anyway. On top of that, Tomoe was a nice girl, unassuming and easygoing as long as she was treated with respect, the type of person Chisato could easily get along with.

Kaoru, on the other hand… was much more complicated.

Not only did they have to pull off a convincing couple on stage, to seem like a cute pair of young lovebirds willing to sacrifice their lives to be together, they had a… sort of _past_ together, if she could call it that. They had been friends, in a different time, a different place, a different _world_ , almost.

They had been proper children back then, kids who had nothing more to worry about than what game to play next and how to get out of eating those disgusting vegetables at dinner. But then, not long after, fame hit Chisato like a speeding truck and flung her about ten years into the future. Suddenly thrown under the public eye, subject to all sorts of horrible comments, Chisato had to either grow up quickly or crumble under the pressure.

And Shirasagi Chisato did not crumble under pressure, _ever_.

_Shirasagi Chisato? She’s so overrated._

_She isn’t cute at all, huh?_

_She doesn’t even smile at fans; what kind of horrible parents does she have?_

At barely seven years old, she had no choice but to grit her teeth and take those words, pretending that they did not affect her at all. Slowly, slowly, she began to close off her heart, and the concerned Kaoru redoubled her efforts to make her feel better.

Kaoru… Back then, she had been an awkward tiny ball of nervous energy. Shy and easily intimidated, she was a crybaby that often hid behind Chisato, clutching onto her arm in tears. It was… refreshing, to say the least, because everyone else around her seemed to be trying too hard to be perfect, to either impress her, the prodigal child actress, or to one-up her. No one but Kaoru was that honest, revealing all their flaws and baring their hearts in blind trust.

However, as the days passed, even Kaoru began to change. She changed the way she talked, walked and looked, even going as far as to change the things she ate, trying her hardest to act as cool as possible.

Was Kaoru, too, corrupted by her fame? Chisato felt her heart shatter with each and every day, as her beloved Kaoru faded further and further into that pretentious, Shakespeare-reading prince. What had caused this sudden change of heart, why was she acting so hard?

The final straw, however, came from somebody else entirely.

She was eight years old when she befriended one of the girls in her class, a headstrong, smart but plain little girl by the name of Sakiko. She, too, was an amateur actor, but unlike Chisato, was struggling to make her breakthrough - not that Chisato knew that.

She thought that Sakiko was an ordinary schoolgirl, and they seemed to share so many interests that they got along swimmingly. As Kaoru slowly drifted away from her, Chisato desperately tried to fill the hole with Sakiko’s company, stubbornly convincing herself that they were true friends.

Unfortunately, that illusion did not take long to shatter.

The second semester had just begun, and Chisato was drained and grumpy because her “holiday” had been taken up by back-to-back shoots in Tokyo, and her parents wanted to move them there to save the trouble of constant travel. Chisato had protested - the entire world that she knew and loved was here, in her hometown, in the sparkle of red eyes and the gentle curve of a shy smile. How could they ask her to give up any more than she already had?

Oblivious to her mood, Sakiko was pestering her for stories on set - Chisato had been cast alongside two of the biggest names in Japanese television, and was the envy of her entire school. Frustrated and exhausted, Chisato had snapped at her, telling her to learn to read the air before something awful happened.

That was when Sakiko snapped back. Hands balled into tiny fists, Sakiko had asked Chisato how she could be so grumpy when her life was practically a dream. She was famous and talented, people knew her name on the street and she had a growing fanclub despite being only eight years old. Unlike her, Sakiko could only land the roles of scene-filler; how could Chisato be so ungrateful? Sakiko had hoped that, through befriending Chisato, she could become a better actress and get cast into better roles.

“I don’t even like you!” Sakiko had shouted, “Mama told me to be friends with you just because you’re famous!”

Those words cracked Chisato’s heart right down the middle. Her best friend was steadily becoming a stranger, and her only other friend turned out to be using her for her fame, an amateur actress hoping to hang on to her coat-tails. There was nothing left for her in the world anymore, nothing but the stage she had given up everything to stand on.

When she got home that day, she agreed to move to Tokyo as soon as possible, to put her career before anything else.

Had it truly been what she wanted? Looking back, Chisato could no longer be sure. Knowing what she did now, she would definitely dissuade her younger self from pursuing her dream, because what stood at the end of that road was an empty, shiny world made of plastic.

When she heard that Kaoru would be applying for the Takarazuka Music School after middle school, Chisato had no idea why she had been overcome by the longing to follow her. She knew of the Revue - what self-respecting actor didn’t? She admired them, yes, but… the main reason she had chosen to apply was for the chance to meet Kaoru again.

Kaoru… in the years they had been apart, she had only grown more pretentious and dishonest. It was painful to see; did the Kaoru that she adored still exist anywhere in this world? If she peeled away the shiny layers around Kaoru, what would she find underneath?

With a sigh, Chisato collapsed into her bed, shoving those dark thoughts from her mind. It was pointless worrying about things she could not change, all she could do was try her best to get along with Kaoru to make this show work out. She had come too far, sacrificed way too much, to entertain failure now.

 

~

 

_"Otona no chikari ni maketari shinai            (We won't lose to the power of the adults)  
Oretachi no ou wa oretachi nanda!”            (We are our own kings!) _

Kaoru tossed her fringe as she settled into her final pose, Aiko and Misaki on either side of her. This was one of her favorite songs in the show - _Sekai no Ou_ \- it was an energetic, upbeat song by the young Montague clan members, declaring that they were the true rulers of the world and that nothing could get in their way. It was a rather sad song to listen to, in hindsight, if you knew that of the three boys jumping around with the confidence of youth, only one of them would remain alive in the end.

Aiko played a brilliant Mercutio, carefree and boyish, she behaved as if she had no idea the word “consequences” existed. He was all wrapped up in the fires of youth, consumed by the illusion of immortality, unaware of how painfully fleeting it was.

“Kurosawa!” the director called out, “You’re too stiff! Relax a little, Benvolio has no idea anything bad is going to happen yet!”

Misaki, on the other hand, was having a slightly harder time getting into that relaxed, overconfident attitude that the Montague boys had. Benvolio was slightly more reserved than Mercutio, yes, but it took him until _Kettou_ , The Duel, for him to understand Romeo’s point of view and the true consequences all the hatred in Verona would have for his generation.

“I want to run through the entire first act, so I’ll let that slip for now,” the director said, glancing down at his script. “We’ll go over it again after the break. Let’s continue!”

Obediently, everyone moved on to the next scene, Chisato grabbing her mask from the benches at the side of the rehearsal room as Mercutio wrapped up his song and the Montagues filed off the “stage”, leaving Kaoru behind as Rei, who was playing Death, came up toward her.

This song was right up Kaoru’s alley, Chisato thought as she watched her - it was intensely dramatic, a literal dance with Death. Romeo has a terrible premonition that darkness is coming upon them, crying out, _I am afraid_ , but no one is there to listen to him but the shadow of Death himself.

She was good, Chisato acknowledged, better than good, even. Crouched, crying, on the floor, she looked every bit a frightened young boy, terrified of losing the friends he loved as dear brothers. Her voice was powerful, the emotions raw - it was no wonder that the company had selected her of all the _otokoyaku_ underclassmen to play Romeo.

Chisato quickly got ready to enter the stage as Kaoru scuttled off, the music that signaled the beginning of the ball scene starting up. It was a long dance scene, but also the scene where Romeo and Juliette first laid eyes on each other, and Chisato knew how important it was to start their “relationship” off right.

With barely any words, they needed to show that they were incredibly attracted to each other, to build up that love-at-first-sight element until they hit the next song - _Tenshi no Uta ga Kikoeru,_ a dramatic love song about how the angels were singing with joy that they had finally met each other.

Kaoru was perfect, as she was whenever she was given any sort of prince-like role, and Chisato tried her very best to follow her lead. She smiled until her cheeks ached, trying to radiate love the way Kaoru seemed to be doing, but from the look in the director’s eyes, she knew she was not quite up to standard.

_“Naze ka namida ga koboreru, kore ga ai.”            (For some reason, I am crying; this is love.)_

Gently, she rested her hands on Kaoru’s shoulder, and just then, the director shouted, “Cut!”

The music came to an abrupt halt, everyone on stage freezing in position and awaiting correction. Chisato knew, immediately, that it was probably something she had done wrong; the lovestruck expression on Kaoru’s infuriatingly handsome face was so perfect, her stomach was doing backflips.

“Asato,” he sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, “You’re supposed to be in love! Why do you look as if you’d rather swallow nails than be here?”

Was her expression that bad? Chisato quickly bowed her head in apology, and the director sighed again before signaling for them to continue as they were. Putting more effort into her smile, Chisato tried her best to pretend she was in love with Kaoru, but a hard lump in her chest seemed to tear away at her until they were finally separated by an angry Tybalt.

What was going on, why was her heart aching like that? Was she tired, had she overworked herself? Chisato quickly grabbed a water bottle as Tomoe took the stage for her solo song, shoving the thoughts of Kaoru from her mind as she watched the junior perform.

 _“Hontou no ore wa chigau                 (The real me is different)_  
_Fukushuu no tessaki ni nanka           (A tool for vengeance)_  
_Naritaku wa nakattanda!”                  (I never wanted to become anything like that!)_

Tomoe was a remarkable Tybalt, Chisato thought. She had never quite liked his character, he was violent and angry and blamed his suffering on others when he never did much to fight against what they asked him to be, but Tomoe played him in a way that brought out just how human he was. A misguided young man, no, more of a boy than a man, who just longed for the love of someone he could never touch.

If Tomoe had been her Romeo instead, she probably would be having a much easier time pretending to like her...

As the song drew on, Chisato quickly scurried to the fake balcony to prepare herself for the next scene, reminding herself repeatedly that she needed to pull this off properly because this was the signature scene of the show. Even if she could not match the fervor in Kaoru’s eyes, the least she could do was try, even if her skin was sparking with protest everywhere Kaoru touched her.

 _"Bara to iu na no hana wa           (That which is called a rose)_  
_Namae wo kaete mo                   (Even if it were to change its name)_  
_Kaori wa kawaranai                    (Its scent would not change)_  
_Namae ni imi wa nai."                (There is no meaning to a name.)_

As they leaned in for the first kiss, Chisato flinched slightly, and from the grumble she heard from the director’s chair, she knew that it had been noticed. She was trying, she was trying with every bit of strength she had inside her, but her body refused to stop cringing away from Kaoru’s touch.

As Kaoru ran off, the rose in her hand and the silliest grin on her face, Chisato let out a little sigh of relief. As Friar Lawrence’s actress walked onto the stage, Kaoru calling after her like an eager little boy, Chisato stepped off the balcony and grabbed her towel, settling down on the bench to wait for her next scene.

How was Kaoru performing so well, how was her skin not crawling in protest every time they touched, how was her heart not pounding out of her throat when they leaned in for their many kisses? How could she pretend to be so helplessly in love with a girl who seemed to look down on her more often than not?

Maybe she should have rejected the role, she thought, performing in such close quarters with Kaoru was driving her insane. She missed the old days, the way Kaoru had called her name and tailed her everywhere she went, and she hated this new, Shakespeare-quoting Kaoru that seemed to have skin thicker than the side of a battleship.

What was she hoping for, anyway, chasing Kaoru for so long? Their friendship had disappeared years ago, and there was nothing left but memories…

“Ow!” Aiko clutched at her head in mock agony, the sound pulling Chisato from her thoughts - she and Misaki had been given free reign to “bully” Juliette’s nurse during the song about how Romeo had never fallen in love before, and Aiko had elected to look up her skirt.

If only she could act in such a carefree manner, she thought, watching as Misaki pressed a kiss to the back of the nurse’s hand with a dramatic flourish. Everyone seemed to be growing more and more comfortable with their role with each and every rehearsal, everyone but her.

What was wrong?

 

~

 

Kaoru tried her best to ignore the tense atmosphere as they sipped their tea in the little cafe that almost everyone used for their “dates”. At the director’s insistence, they had gone on regular dates through the course of their rehearsal, but they were all awkward, quiet and filled with tension. The date of the performance was drawing near, they had barely two days left, and Chisato still refused to even be friendly with her.

“Alright, Chisato, I want to be frank with you,” she finally choked out, surprise filling Chisato’s eyes as she gently set down her teacup. “It is obvious you do not like me, and I do not want to force you to.”

She was too stunned to even politely protest the accusation, it seemed; her hands had gone under the table and she seemed almost paler than usual. Ignoring that, Kaoru plowed on - Chisato was important to her, even if they were no longer friends, and she would do anything she could to ease her discomfort.

“If I twist the angles more, I can pretend to touch you in most of our scenes without actually doing it,” her voice was robotic, emotionless, as if it were unaffected by the storm of emotions raging inside her heart. “Is there anything else I can do to make the performance more comfortable for you?”

Chisato cleared her throat suddenly, pushing her cup away from her and standing up. “Please take me home.”

Kaoru nodded, pushing down the jolt of pain in her chest. If this was what Chisato wanted, it would be what she got; Kaoru knew a true gentleman would not begrudge a woman her choices. Mechanically, she paid and held open the door for her partner, wondering if she should aim for a troupe transfer to avoid the awkward situation of being made to play a romantic role alongside Chisato again.

In absolute silence, they made their way to Chisato’s apartment - a block that contained almost half the _musumeyaku_ from their class. The tension between them was so thick that no one dared to call out to them as they passed - Kanon took one look and disappeared back into her room with what sounded suspiciously like a squeak of terror.

The moment Chisato unlocked her door, Kaoru turned to leave, struggling to keep her voice steady as she said, “See you tomorrow.”

“Wait,” Chisato called out, “Please… stay.”

Confusion and anger rose in Kaoru’s chest as she turned - what sort of game was she trying to play? Wasn’t she the one who disliked her, wasn’t she the one who wanted Kaoru to disappear as soon as possible, the one flinching every time they touched? What was going on inside that pretty little head of hers?

With a low growl, she marched into the apartment, slamming the door shut behind them with a bang that made Chisato jump. “What are you trying to do?”

“E-eh…?”

Kaoru let out a bitter laugh, “Don’t play dumb with me, Chisato. What am I to you, a fool, a toy, something to entertain yourself with?”

What was going on? Kaoru had no idea, her insides had been scrambled the second Chisato had called out to her, and there was a giant mess of emotions raging within her that she could not make head or tail of. The words were coming out of her mouth before her brain could even think them.

She was crying, she realized belatedly, though she could not fathom the reason why. Chisato looked completely thrown off, a mixture of shock and fear and concern spreading across her face, an expression Kaoru longed to burn into her memory before it disappeared forever and disdain returned to take its usual place.

“I like you! I’ve always liked you!”

Chisato’s eyes widened, and she cautiously reached out to rest a hand on Kaoru’s arm - a sign of gentle rejection, Kaoru supposed, a way of letting her down easy. “Kaoru, I…”

“I know,” she interrupted, shaking her head, “You don’t like me-”

“It’s not like that!” Chisato cried out, the outburst clearly startling them both. “I… I just don’t… Why did you change so much, Kao-chan?”

The sound of that old nickname physically hurt, and Kaoru winced as it cut into her like so many shards of broken glass. “Back then, Chisato… you were suffering so much, but I couldn’t do anything at all… I just wanted to become stronger, to… to protect you. I wanted you to be able to rely on me…!”

Had Chisato not understood that? Hadn’t she pushed Kaoru away because she regarded her pathetic attempts with disdain, because she needed somebody stronger than Kaoru by her side to face the challenges that fame had thrown her way?

“Kaoru…” Chisato was crying, too, burying her face in her hands, “I… I thought you changed to be just like everyone else! I… I thought you wanted to be cool in front of me, to… to use me, too…”

“I didn’t want to believe it,” she continued, raising her head to meet Kaoru’s eyes, “My Kao-chan wouldn’t be like that! So I kept… trying to test you…”

 _Oh._ The realization hit Kaoru like a truck - so that was what all those cold words and constant teasing was about, Chisato had just been trying to convince herself that Kaoru wasn’t putting on a front to impress her like all those other people. And all along, Kaoru thought that her disdain was real, that she wanted Kaoru to act harder, to get better before she deserved to protect her…

“I… I’m such an idiot…” Kaoru whispered, burying her face in her hands. How could she make such a stupid misunderstanding when she claimed to be the one who knew Chisato the best, who understood her the most?

“You are,” Chisato said softly, but the usual bite to her words was missing. “You are, but so am I. I’m so sorry, Kao-chan…”

“Chi-chan…”

It seemed that fate was something you could rely on, after all.

 

~

 

Chisato woke up to the delicious smell of food wafting in from her kitchen, and it took her brain a few too many moments to piece together what had happened. After the rather embarrassing crying fest, Kaoru had spent the night, curled securely around Chisato like a giant cat. Kaoru used to be an early riser, she remembered, though as a child she was the type who could burn water. When had she learned to cook?

Wandering over to the kitchen, she spent a moment admiring the sight of Kaoru, bent a little awkwardly over her too-short stove, humming as she worked. Had the world always been this soft and warm, Chisato wondered, and she was just too lonely to notice, or had it magically changed overnight?

“Good morning,” she mumbled, wrapping her arms around Kaoru’s waist with a sigh of contentment.

Kaoru yelped, nearly dropping the frying pan, “Chi-chan, that’s dangerous!”

She laughed, nuzzling her cheek into Kaoru’s back, “I haven’t answered your confession properly, have I?”

“A-ah…” Kaoru froze, and Chisato quickly whisked the pan out of her hand before she dropped it somewhere and ruined the moment.

With a quick thanks to whatever god that gave Kaoru her penchant for ties, Chisato caught hold of it and tugged her down, admiring the way her face flushed crimson. She had no idea how long she had been dreaming of this moment, their faces so close that their noses were almost touching, their bodies pressed so tightly against each other she could feel the heartbeat thundering in Kaoru’s chest. All she knew was that she never wanted it to end.

At the last possible moment, Chisato pulled up, kissing Kaoru’s nose instead, savoring the little squeak she made in response.

“I like you,” she whispered, “I like you, Seta Kaoru.”

Kaoru gulped audibly as she rested trembling hands on Chisato’s waist, as if she could not quite believe that this was real. “Chi… sato?”

“As long as we’re in Takarazuka, we can’t date, but… would you… wait for me?”

Finally, Kaoru smiled, the shock in her eyes being replaced by warmth as she replied, “Of course I will. We'll need a long time to catch up again, anyway.”

She was right, and they had all the time in the world ahead of them to do so, without being pressured by the need to label their relationship to anyone. They could take their time, explore what had changed and savor what had not, until they were satisfied with the spotlight at the top of the world.

 

~

 

“Asato! Tadokoro!”

Startled, Kaoru almost fell off the balcony, and Chisato grabbed on to her waist to anchor her as they turned to face the director. Everyone else was equally stunned - he had not shouted for a cut, and it took the orchestra a few seconds to quiet down enough for him to speak.

“What happened between the two of you?” he asked, the expression on his face unreadable.

“S-sir?” Kaoru stuttered, wondering if they had done something awfully wrong, “Did we make a mistake?”

“The opposite!” A huge grin broke out across his face, “ _Now_ you look like a couple! I don’t know what magic trick you used, but I hope you can do it again!”

With a smile almost wide enough to match his, they replied, “Yes sir!”

This was it, they were going to put on the perfect performance - Chisato could feel it in her bones. Every single time Kaoru looked at her, she felt as if she was strong enough to rule the entire world, as if she needed nothing else but that smile for as long as she lived. It was certainly how Juliette felt, whenever she looked at Romeo, that there was nothing in this world that could hope to stand in their way as long as they were together.

 

~

 

 _“Aimer, kono uchuu                           (Aimer, this universe)_  
_Aimer, owarou to                               (Aimer, even if it were to end)_  
_Futari no ai dake ga nokoru               (Only our love will remain)_ _  
Eien ni.”                                             (For eternity.)_

 

It felt as if the rest of the world was fading away as they danced, the entire universe narrowing to the lights that sparkled in the other’s eyes. They had performed to the best of their abilities, they had endured so much together to get to this point, and now the curtain was just about to fall.

The audience erupted into applause as they pulled each other close, Kaoru tilting her head to steal one last stage kiss. Perfect, it was perfect, and Chisato found herself wishing that this fleeting moment under the spotlight could last forever.

 _Romeo and Juliette_ … if they ever made it to the top together, Chisato would definitely want to perform it again.


End file.
